Satan’s Seat
New York City has sometimes been called "Satan's Seat." "The late sensation in New York (where Satan's seat is) has roused us to a fresh conception of his terrific reign…
Education/Schools
Saturday Night Liberal (Saturday Night Live or SNL nickname)
Saturday Night Live (SNL) is an American late-night live television sketch comedy that originated in 1975 and is broadcast from New York City. Many conservatives have argued that SNL has a liberal…
Saturday Night Special
A "Saturday night special" (or "blitzkrieg") is a surprise takeover attempt. In 1975, Colt Industries (manufacturer of guns) attempted what would be a successful takeover of…
Sauce Proposal (Proposal Sauce)
American chef Marc Forgione opened Restaurant Marc Forgione at 134 Reade Street in Manhattan. "Halibut en Croute, Hazelnuts, Sauce Proposal" is a popular dish, and many diners have…
Saudi America (oil-producing areas of the United States)
The name "Saudi America" (Saudi Arabia + United States of America) refers to a United States that is energy independent (and possibly even an energy exporter). Texas had oil in the 20th…
Sauerkraut Bend (King William Street, San Antonio)
King William Street (originally "Kaiserwilhelm Strasse") in San Antonio had so many German immigrants that it was called "Sauerkraut Bend." The "sauerkraut" nickname…
Sausage Sandwich
Entry in progress -- B.P. Google BooksThe True Story of My Life: A SketchBy Hans Christian AndersenTranslated by Mary HowittLondon: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans1847Pp. 37-38:A few women, who…
Savile Row (bespoke tailoring in NoHo/Nolita/West Village)
Savile Row is a shopping street in central London famous for its traditional men's bespoke tailoring. An April 12, 2012 article on the Business Insider website was titled "A Bespoke…
Sawdust Pie
A recipe for "sawdust pie' was published in the May 1983 issue of Bon Appetit, from Patti's 1880's Settlement of Grand Rivers, KY. The pie contains graham cracker crumbs (the…
Sawdust Trail (Sawdust Circuit)
The "sawdust trail" (or "sawdust circuit") refers to the churches that preachers traveled to in the early 1900s. The trail to these tabernacles was usually covered with sawdust,…
Sayre’s Law: Mayors of NY come from nowhere and go nowhere
Rudy Giuliani is going to hate me for this one, but I didn't make it up. Autumn 1977, PS, vol. 10, no. 4, pg. 511:Perhaps this is the time to record publicly two more of Wallace Sayre's…
Sazerac (cocktail)
Entry in progress -- B.P. Wikipedia: Sazerac (cocktail)The Sazerac is one of the oldest known cocktails, with its origins in pre-Civil War New Orleans, Louisiana. The original drink is based on a…
Scalpel vs. Machete (budget-cutting techniques)
There are two metaphorical tools that politicians claim to use in cutting a budget -- a scalpel (for small, surgical cuts, causing the least harm) and a machete (for massive cuts). Unless the…
Scamdemic (scam + pandemic)
"Scamdemic" (scam + pandemic) means a fake pandemic. The term was first used during the 2009 swine flu pandemic. "Wondering if #swineflu is really a pandemic, or is it a hamdemic or…
Scampaign (scam + campaign)
A "scampaign" (scam + campaign) is a campaign -- a political campaign or a campaign for a specific cause or business -- that contains fraud and can be called a "scam."…
Scandalpalooza (scandal + lollapalooza)
"Scandalpalooza" (scandal + lollapalooza) is when a government has several scandals (sometimes called "-gates," after the Watergate scandal). The word "scandalpalooza"…
Scarebus (Airbus nickname)
Airbus is an aircraft manufacturing subsidiary of EADS, a European aerospace company. People who believe that its planes are not safe have nicknamed the company "Scarebus" (or…
Scaredemic (scare + pandemic)
"Scaredemic" (scare + pandemic) became a popular term during the 2020 COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, but it had appeared earlier. "Homespun Craft Show tomorrow, the Scaredemic will…
Scarf (to eat)
Entry in progress -- B.P. (Oxford English Dictionary)scarf, vU.S. slang var. scoff v.2 1. Also absol. and const. up and down.1960 R. G. Reisner Jazz Titans 164 Scarf, eat.1968 C. Armstrong Balloon…
Scariant (scare/scary + variant)
The COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic had variants, called by some as "scariant" (scare/scary + variant). "So many variants of scary. Scariants" was posted on Twitter by Cal…